Joy of Clojure is about the “why” of Clojure. Clojure Applied is very much about the “how”. So they’re two very different books. So it depends on what direction you want to move? If you want to truly “grok” Clojure and get into the “way of Clojure” then JoC should be next. If you want to get better at building things, with a practical bent, then Applied should be next.